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Common Purpose

We are pleased to announce that Sanmita Kamat has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of Common Purpose India, as of 1 August 2018. Sanmita has 22 years of experience working in the private and not-for-profit sectors, across eight organizations and two continents. She joined Common Purpose in September 2017 as Senior Director, Business Development, and has been responsible for the South Asia Venture, a leadership programme for exceptional emerging leaders in the region.

Sanmita has worked at a range of organizations, including Walmart, the Tata Medical Center Trust, CRY and the ICCO Cooperation, in capacities such as Vice President of Donor Relationships and Head of CSR and Sustainability. With a wealth of experience across different sectors, she has always recognized the importance of inclusivity and collaboration in the workplace, and she enjoys working with diverse groups of people.

Crossing boundaries has been a prominent feature of Sanmita’s professional journey so far. One example stands out in particular, which changed the way she thought about organizations and how they operate. In her own words: ‘When I started my role as Director of Consumer Insights at Walmart in the USA, in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, news outlets were talking about how Walmart’s disaster management cell was reaching out in Louisiana (in some areas, even before the federal services had reached out). Until then, I’d only thought about the world and Walmart in the manner of a typical MBA student – in terms of business. This incident changed my perspective and showed me that a capitalist organization could take meaningful social action and not just focus on their balance sheet.’

This experience led Sanmita to take a triple bottom line approach and she endeavoured to look at career moves that would combine her management skills with positive social action and its impact on civil society. Her stints in India when she came back from the USA included corporate trusts and non-profit organizations.

As CEO of Common Purpose India, Sanmita looks forward to collaborating with the corporate sector, government and semi-government agencies and education institutions to promote cultural intelligence and inclusivity by way of programmes and initiatives. She wishes to bring stakeholders together and, by consensus and marketing intelligence, identify ways to impact society in a meaningful and sustainable way.

She plans to work closely with the global team and co-create, while identifying opportunities for Common Purpose’s work in India. Sanmita said: ‘I am very excited about this new role and the opportunity to play a part in the future of Common Purpose India. Inclusivity is vital in any society, and is especially critical for a large and complex country that is as diverse as ours. I see a great opportunity for Common Purpose to address the very real challenges that India faces.’

Adirupa Sengupta, CEO of Common Purpose Asia-Pacific and interim CEO of Common Purpose India, said: ‘We are delighted that Sanmita has been appointed CEO of Common Purpose India. She is leading the organization at a very interesting time as we step up our presence in the region and celebrate ten years of operations in India. Sanmita is passionate about crossing boundaries and collaborating with diverse groups of people, and I am sure that the organization will continue to grow and develop under her leadership.’

We wish Sanmita the very best in her new role and look forward to seeing all that Common Purpose India continues to accomplish into the future!

Common Purpose

Common Purpose is a not-for-profit leadership development organization that specializes in Cross-Boundary leadership. Founded in 1989, we run programmes in over 100 cities worldwide, and have more than 75,000 Alumni.